THE PLOT:

When world famous game developer James D. Halliday passes away, his will stipulates that his vast fortune will be awarded to the first person to find an easter egg hidden somewhere in his massive creation known as The Oasis. This sparks the biggest scavenger hunt that the world has ever seen.
High School student Wade Watts (AKA Parzival) is just one of those looking to solve the puzzle. He researches the life of Halliday thoroughly, obsessively listening to the man’s favorite music, watching his favorite movies and television shows, reading his favorite authors and books and, most of all, playing his favorite video games. Parzival is hoping that his knowledge will give him the edge.
When Parzival becomes the first person to solve the first puzzle, just ahead of a player named Art3mis, he sets off an unexpected chain of events. Being first would not just impact him inside of The Oasis, but there would also be deadly, real world consequences .
These events would force Parzival, his crush Art3mis, his best friend Aech and a Japanese player named Shoto to work together to ensure that Halliday’s fortune and, more importantly, The Oasis itself doesn’t fall into the wrong hands.
It takes a little bit of time before the action of ‘Ready Player One’ gets fully underway. However, it is time that is an investment. The author goes on a lot in the earliest chapters to explain how this world works and the rules that govern it. The early exposition comes in handy once the real chase begins. Doing so much work to build the foundation early means fewer side explanations later that could derail the story as it unfolds.
‘Ready Player One’ is an avalanche of pop culture references, particularly from the 1980s. I was born in 1981 and while there were many that I understood quite well, there were some that went right past me. Thankfully, the references that made up the most critical elements of the story were explained in detail.
It would be unfair to call ‘Ready Player One’ nothing more than an explosion of pop culture references. In truth, there is depth to the story and lessons to be learned. One message, delivered by Halliday himself, will go over well with those who worry that virtual play is becoming a replacement for real interaction.

THE AUTHOR:

What Ernest Cline has done with ‘Ready Player One’ is absolutely amazing. You don’t need to be a hardcore gamer, surrounded entirely by geek culture or a 1980s historian to follow the story of ‘Ready Player One’. Indeed, people who fit into those groups will have a higher degree of fondness for Cline’s work but the structure he created ensures that the story can be accessible to anyone.

THE NARRATION:

Wil Wheaton gives an outstanding performance throughout ‘Ready Player One’. It helps when a narrator has obvious enthusiasm for the project they’re working on, and it’s clear that this wasn’t just another job for Wheaton. He was the right choice, both for his Science Fiction credibility and his well-known love of technology.
From scenes involving trash talk to those of frustration, heartbreak, excitement and caring, Wheaton always plays it the right way. This is the audiobook narration equivalent of a perfect game of Pac-Man.

THE PRODUCTION:

No music or background sound effects are used on the track. Chapter stops are where you’d expect them to be and the audio is free of glitches.

CONCLUSION:

The ‘Ready Player One’ audiobook is a winning presentation in all aspects. Cline has created something that can easily be appreciated by children of the 1980s and fans of geek culture but doesn’t completely go over the heads of everyone else. Then Wil Wheaton took that creation and his enthusiasm for it and played it all perfectly.
‘Ready Player One’ is a love letter to a certain segment of popular culture, but it is much more than that. It is also thoroughly engaging, wildly entertaining and sometimes even poignant.